Southern medical journal
-
The purpose of the study was to develop and test a short gun questionnaire and compare its reliability to a long gun questionnaire to identify youths who may have access to or ownership of a gun. ⋯ The developed short questionnaire provides results similar to the long questionnaire: a low number of gun owners but a high level of gun accessibility and availability.
-
Southern medical journal · Dec 2003
Use of birth certificates and surveillance data to characterize reported pertussis among Texas infants and young children, 1995 to 2000.
Pertussis morbidity is increasing, especially among young infants and children, who are more likely to be hospitalized and have more severe complications. Maternal and pediatric factors associated with underimmunization and hospitalization for pertussis are poorly understood, but young maternal age and low birth weight have been associated with pertussis among young infants. ⋯ More than two-thirds of the children reported as pertussis cases were old enough to have at least one dose of a pertussis-containing vaccine but were not immunized. Maternal and pediatric characteristics on birth certificates were not useful in predicting either underimmunization or hospitalization for pertussis complications. More current assessments of maternal and pediatric characteristics should be part of pertussis contact investigations.
-
Southern medical journal · Dec 2003
The impact of resident physician coverage on emergency department visits in South Carolina.
This study examines emergency department (ED) visits to assess the potential impact on rural and minority patients if the practice of resident moonlighting was limited. ⋯ Patients from vulnerable populations have greater odds of being seen by a resident physician for an ED visit. These populations may be placed at risk for reduced access to health care services if limitations on resident physician moonlighting impair the ability of rural hospitals to staff EDs.